Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1446450
ANNIVERSARY ISSUE 19 D E PA R T M E N T 2022 1965 2000 1986 From Joanna Romersa's memories of roller-skating the 1979 picket line to Anthony Chun's recollections of using "high-tech" Post-it notes for storyboarding in the early 2000s, seven TAG members across the decades reflect on their careers and how the Guild has been—and continues to be—a crucial part of their lives. 1974 Currently an Animation Director at Cartoon Network, Alvarez is on his 54th year in animation. Since 1968, he has worked on more than 190 different shows. He still loves animation and is happy to be a part of the industry. HOW DID YOU GET STARTED IN THE ANIMATION INDUSTRY? In 1968, I got a phone call from a friend who was working at Fred Calvert's studio. I went there and Fred took me into a room and sat me down to do a test—an in-between. Twenty minutes later he came back and checked my drawing. He said I could start the next day on the Banana Splits show. The first animation segments I worked on were "The Three Musketeers" and "The Arabian Knights." My salary to start was $50 a week, but I didn't care because I was finally in the animation business. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PROJECT YOU'VE WORKED ON IN YOUR CAREER AND WHY? 1970s ROBERT ALVAREZ My favorite is Samurai Jack. I feel that show was so well done, and the crew were so very talented. It also gave me my first Emmy. TELL US WHAT THE ANIMATION INDUSTRY LOOKED LIKE IN THE 1970S. In the 1970s the animation industry was pretty much the same as it was in the late 1960s. There were still a lot of Golden Age animators working in television, and it was great meeting your animation heroes and hearing about the past. The people that oversaw shows were usually old veterans from the 1930s or the 1940s. Work was seasonal. Almost all of the studios that were around back then are now gone, and the big corporations did not own the studios. It was a good time to get started because you could be taught how to work in the industry doing almost anything. HOW HAS THE ANIMATION INDUSTRY CHANGED FROM WHEN YOU STARTED TO NOW? Back in 19 68 everything was still done on paper. Shows were still inked and painted on cells. Productions were still all done here in Los Angeles. Today we are working in the digital age. You no longer can hold the artwork in your hands. I prefer seeing and keeping the original art. HOW HAS THE UNION IMPACTED THE ANIMATION INDUSTRY WHILE YOU'VE BEEN A MEMBER? The Union has always been important to me. We all stand on the shoulders of those brave men and women who went out on strike [against Disney] in 1941. Animation artists benefit from a strong union.